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Transparency International Ireland (TI Ireland) has written to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today asking that it continue hearing evidence on the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report into the cancellation of penalty points by senior members of the Gardaí in 2011 and 2012. The PAC is meeting this afternoon to decide on whether it should invite Garda Sergeant Maurice McCabe to give oral evidence to help it examine the potential loss of millions of euros from management in the Garda penalty point records.

‘Sergeant McCabe has been asked by the Department of Justice to help the Oireachtas in its inquiries into the cancellation of penalty points. He’s complied with the law in bringing his concerns to the PAC to help it find out how much money was lost from improper cancellations - not to investigate corruption or fraud. It’s now up to the PAC members to decide on whether they want to live up to the public’s demand to know whether and how the State lost millions of euros from the Garda PULSE system.’ said John Devitt, Chief Executive of TI Ireland.

‘While we welcome the Minister for Justice’s decision to request an investigation into the cancellation of penalty points by the Garda Ombudsman, it’s not the Ombudsman’s role to establish whether or how much taxpayers’ money was lost from improper cancellations. It’s also unlikely that the Ombudsman will have completed its investigation for a number of years – long after allegations were made public,' Mr Devitt added.

Sergeant McCabe has stated that he is willing to give evidence to PAC in private.